Machine for calking boilers



l(No Model.)

H. P.FOLSO1V1. MACHINE FOR- CALKING BOILBRS.

No. 310,812. Patented Jan..13, 18.85.

Narren diaree Partnr lirica@ HENRY P. FOLSOM, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK.

MACHINE FOR CALKING BOILERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 310,812, dated January 13, 1885. Application tiled June 3, 1884. (No model) To a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY l?. FoLsoM," of the city of Brooklyn, county of Kings, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Galking-Machines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description. j

The nature of the invention is hereinafter specied in the claims.

Figure I is a longitudinal View of my improved calking-machine. Fig. 2 is an end view. Fig. 3 is a view of the calking-tool and its bearing.

Similar letters indicate similar parts of the machine in the different figures.

A A A is the frame of the machine, which may be of any suitable form, and should be of strength sufficient to sustain the boiler during the operation'of calking, and to permit the movement and operation of the calkingtools and hammers without undue jar.

B B is a support or cradle in which the boiler to be calked rests, and by means of which it is moved, so as to be subjected to the action of the calking tool or tools. This cradle and the means of adjusting it and preventing the boiler from turning in it, are made the subject of special claim; but it will be understood that other forms of support may be used in combination with reciprocating calking-tools without departing from the more general features of my invention and claim. As shown in the drawings, Fig. 2, said cradle is made in two parts, which may be separated from or advanced toward each other by means of screws G O, or by other suitable equivalent means, so as to allow the cradle to hold boilers of different sizes.

D is an adjustable clutch or clam ping-lever, which can be turned and pressed upon the boiler when placed in position in the cradle B B by means of aset-screw, E, or other equivalent device. I prefer that the parts of the cra die B B should be made of wood, as I have found that such material forms a good bed or rest for the boiler. The top surface at F should be made of steel, iron, or other hard material, so as to form a surface upon which the heads of the line of rivets of the boiler may rest, as shown at f. Vhen the boiler is laid in the cradle B B with the lines of rivet heads resting on top of the plate lE, and the parts of the cradle are brought together, so as to form a iirm support for the boiler, and the clutch or clamping lever D is adjusted so as to hold iirmly, then the boiler so placed will be prevented from turning in the cradle when subjected to the action of the calking tool or tools. As shown in the drawings, there is a plurality of calking-tools and their operating mechanism. They are all lettered alike, but for simplicity, I proceed to describe one of them and its mode of operation, from which that of the others will be readily understood.

G is the calking-tool. It should be made of tool-steel and provided with a beveled edge. It is set in a movable bar or handle, I-I, which passes through an upper bar, A, between bearings or boxes I I, Fig. 3, which, to permit play of the tool, are formed with rounding surfaces. Such surfaces are shown in the drawings on two sides. The spring K acts to press the tool G against the rounding surface of theA boiler and compels it in its descent to follow the surface of the boiler and strike fairly upon the lap or overlapping edge of the seam of the boiler at y. The rounded bearings on boxes I I permit the tool to play between them, and to be acted upon, as aforesaid, byV

the spring K.

L is a spring arranged on the upper part of the tool-handle, as will be readily understood from the drawings, the action of which is to lift the calkingtool after it has struck a blow to calk the boiler-seam, and thus place the calking-tool in position to act again and again.

M is a hammer adapted to strike upon the end of the handle ofthe calking-tool and drive it down so as to calk the seam of the boiler under its point or edge by blows. The hammer is acted by a ratchet or pawl wheel, N N N N ,and lever O. rlhe pawl-wheel rotates on a shaft connected with power.

Other well-known means may be employed for causing the hammers to be lifted to an elevated position and to strike a blow to drive down the calkingtool5 but I prefer the arrangement shown, as I have found that the descent of hammers by gravity is in some respects preferable to other forms of movement. Then any of the hammers are not required IOO for use or their use is not desired-as, for instance, when by the movement of the boiler the head-seam would come under the toolthey can be prevented from falling and thereby acting by being held up by a wire hook and loop at such a height that the lever O will clear the pawl N.

It is obvious that any convenient number of calking-tools can be used, and that when several of such tools are used the ealking of the boilers may be facilitated, because it will be necessary to feed the boiler only a distance equal to the distance between thecalkingtools, thus economizin g much time in the calking operation.

The cradle holding the boiler may be fed past the edges of the calking-tools', so as to subject each portion of the overlapping edge ofthe boiler to their action by means of the rack and pinion-wheel l? Q; and such feed `may be made to act automatically, ii' desired,

by any Well-known connection with power;

but I have not found it necessary to use an automatic feed, and, in fact, an automatic feed is in some respects not desirable,as it embarrasses the operator of the machine in calking the same spot in the boiler several times, when from any imperfection of action or pe culiarity in the edge of the boiler a repetition of the calking action becomes necessary.

The operation of the ealking tool or toolsis to strike a strong blow upon `the projecting lip or overlapping edge of the seam of the boiler, and thicken or spread or upset the metal at that point and make a durable, tight, and firm joint along the same, thereby saving the necessity and expense of soldering or the ment is that in which one hammer at each end of the boiler strikes simultaneously.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

l. The combination, with a supportingframe, of a movable boiler support or cradle and one or more automatically-reciprocating calking-tools, substantially as described.

2. A calking-machine consisting of the fol lowing elements in combination: a movable and adjustable cradle, B B, provided with clamp D or its equivalent and one or more reciprocating calking-tools, substantially as described.

3. The combination of a movable support for a boiler and one or more reciprocating calking-tools moving through round-surfaced bearings, and pressed against the boiler by a spring, K.

4.111 a calking-machine, the combination of an adjustable cradle, B B, and clamp D, one or more reciprocating ealking-tools, and one or more hammers operating by gravity.

5. The reciprocating calking-tool G, in combination With the round-surfaced bearings I I and spring K, substantially as described.

6. The combination of the adjustable parts B B, having the surface F and clamp D, substantially as and for the purpose described.

HENRY i).- FoLsoM.

Vitncsses:

HENRY S. HoYT, Jr., THOMAS HUNT. 

